Day 1 of the 10-day antitrust lawsuit trial between NASCAR and 23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports finally came to a close on Monday after weeks of anxious waiting. The jury was selected, both parties delivered their opening statements, and a partial testimony was heard from Denny Hamlin. Under the weight of the moment, Kenny Wallace has noted an oddity that irks him a great deal.
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Wallace said on his YouTube channel that the trial is not being given enough attention by certain media members who are deeply embedded in the sport, while the rest of the world is buzzing around the courtroom story.
The 62-year-old called them out, “So, here we are on December 1st, and this time it’s real, and nobody can ignore it. I think of Dave Moody today. I think of Larry McReynolds.”
“Do they act like it’s not happening? Can they lie to themselves? I mean this in a loving, caring way. They are the NASCAR station. You know, MRN is kind of a serious NASCAR channel. Today’s story on this Monday is only so many days from the Daytona 500. Can you act like today’s a normal day? Can you act like it’s none of our business while it’s worldwide?”
Unable to believe that they’re acting like NASCAR isn’t involved in a fight for its life, Wallace seethed that everyone might finally speak about things if the sanctioning body lost the case. That would be an extraordinary situation no longer ignored. Judge Kenneth Bell indicated that a potential remedy could be to order the sale of every NASCAR-owned race track, or the sport itself, if it lost the case.
Such an outcome would be inevitable to talk about for any media member.
Michael Jordan: The center of attention
Not to anyone’s surprise, Michael Jordan was the center of attraction in the room. Many jurors were eager to catch a glimpse of the Chicago Bulls legend, and some even tried interacting with him after being recused. 23XI Racing attorneys noted at multiple points throughout the proceedings that his image and influence were how the team was able to stay afloat despite NASCAR’s broken business model.
After a year of failed negotiations to settle, members from both parties were seated on opposite sides of the room as their attorneys laid out their cases. Some key numbers were revealed during this and will be instrumental going forward. “Airspeed”, the race shop that 23XI Racing uses, cost $35 million to build. The team pays $8 million annually to Joe Gibbs Racing for a technical alliance.
It generated $45 million annually from 2022 to 2024 as sponsorship revenue, a figure largely attributed to Jordan. With a jury of six members and three alternates selected, the trial will resume on Tuesday with Hamlin continuing his statement.
